I'm Not Done With You
by freedomatthesea
Summary: After two weeks have passed and Killian hasn't been seen anywhere in town, Emma takes it into her own hands to find the missing pirate.
1. Chapter 1

Hook had been missing for a total of two weeks and as much as she despised the feeling, she was worried about him. Cora had only been seen a few times since their arrival to Storybrooke and many just assumed that Captain Hook was hiding out with the Queen. But, Emma had other opinions. Her last encounter with Killian hadn't seemed final, in fact, their last interchange felt uneasily meaningful.

He alluded that she was like the bean, shriveled up and useless and yet that damned bean was what had brought him to Storybrooke. Though he did talk quite a bit just to hear himself talk, that didn't seem to be without cause. He _wasn't_ done with her.

But then where was he? Because the last time anyone had seen Cora, she was alone.

Emma knew she shouldn't be putting this much effort into finding the wayward pirate, but she was. Call it foolishness or a desire for closure she was going to find out what he had meant. Because maybe he was done with her, but she wasn't done with him.

* * *

"Gold, where's Hook?" Emma strode into the pawn shop, her eyes flickering around the room for any signs of the pirate.

"What do you mean dearie?" Gold gave her a thin smile, perching his hands on his cane.

Emma crossed her arms across her chest, "The last person he was seen with was _you_." After thoroughly questioning the town and anyone who dwelled down by the docks, Smee had come forward to say that the last time that he had seen Hook was at the docks when he confronted Rumplestiltskin.

"It's true, I met with him two weeks ago – but I haven't seen him since." He gave her a smirk, "Is there any particular reason you want to find him dearie?"

"Don't play games with my Gold, I know full well why he came to see you."

"And why's that?"

Emma narrowed her eyes – she knew that toying with Gold was a dangerous game. "Because of what you did to Milah."

Gold turned away, concealing that look of hatred in his eyes, "Well, _dearie_, that's all been sorted out. He and I finished what needed to be finished."

Emma tensed, "Killian was prepared to die for his cause."

"Did he tell you that?" Gold looked up at her, a dark look in his eyes. "Then maybe your beloved pirate is just that then."

"Are you admitting to killing him?" Emma's brows raised, her heart pounding in her chest. No – he couldn't be dead.

"Well, the way I see it, there's a lot of people who would like to see him dead. He's a pirate after all." Gold tapped his cane against the floor, turning his back to move a few items from the counter, "Now if you excuse me I have some work to do around the shop."

"That's his hook!"

Gold shot around, his eyes focused on Emma. "_His_ hook? Why would I have his hook here Emma?"

"What have you done with him?" Her hand moved to her gun, knowing that it wouldn't do a damned thing to Gold.

"I'll make you a deal-"

"No, you'll tell me where he is."

Gold laughed, "You love him."

Emma's eyes widened, "I hardly know him,"

"Ah," Gold rounded the counter, a knowing smirk on his lips. "But that look in your eyes I have seen before. Your father to be specific, in his quest to find your mother." The miser snatched the hook from her hold, "Care to hear my offer?"

"What is it?" Her voice sounded strained. Gold was trying to play with her, trick her into believing that she was in love with Hook – to get something out of her.

"Don't look so disgruntled Emma, it's hardly any loss to you." He rested his weight against his cane, "That necklace you wear, with the swan."

Emma's fingers went to the necklace, a reminder of Neal and Tallahassee.

"Youthful innocence can be quiet potent in spells," Gold held his hand out for it. "The necklace for Hook."

She unclasped the necklace, all but ready to drop it into his palm before she jerked it away. "What's the catch?"

"A catch?"

"Is he _alive_?"

"Quite."

"Where is he?"

Gold smirked, his gaze going downward as he tapped on the floor. "Our deal?"

"Take it." Emma dropped the necklace into his hand. She hesitated for a second, half expecting purple smoke or something to give way to their deal, but when there was nothing she headed towards the basement door, pulling her cellphone out of her pocket to light her way down the stairs.

The basement was dark, dank, somewhere between a cellar and a dungeon. The light from her phone helped her navigate her way through the ceiling-high stacks of boxes and empty display cases. In the darkness, she could pick up the faint sound of breathing.

"Killian?" As soon as Emma spoke the name, she realized that it was the first time she had ever said his name aloud.

A shuffling sound led her to Hook, bound and gagged in the furthest reach of the basement. She knelt beside him, resting the phone on the floor to light the area. She jerked away the gag from his mouth, cringing at the gasp of pain he gave. His hair was matted with blood, the dried streaks of red revealing where the trail of blood had been left untreated.

"Em-" He was almost too weak to say her name, his mouth dry and burning from the rough cloth that had wicked away any moisture.

"Shh," Emma whispered as she worked the rope loose from his wrists, finally breaking him free. "Can you walk?" His state was sickening – it had been _two_ weeks.

"In a moment," Killian looked up at her, his brows creased together as he mustered a weak smirk, his lips still painful from the gag. "How?"

"I followed my gut." Emma touched his cheek hesitantly, turning it so she could examine his face in the pale glow of her phone. "This needs to be looked at by a doctor."

"I'll live." A strained laugh rumbled in his chest. The pirate's eyes focused in on hers, "I knew you'd find me."

Emma shook her head, sitting back on her legs. "I don't always make the best decisions." Gold's words echoed in her thoughts – _love_. "We need to get you out now before Gold changes his mind." She wrapped her hand beneath his arm, helping him up as they stood.

"Wait," Hook clutched his chest, giving a ragged cough, before he looked up at Emma. "You didn't make a deal did you?"

"I had to." Emma grabbed her cellphone, wanting to avoid him getting overly flattered by her making a deal for his life. "Come on."

* * *

"This does nothing for my looks," Killian stepped out of the bathroom, his eyes narrowed with irritation at the bandaging that was wrapped around his head.

Emma laughed with a hesitant smile on her lips as she looked up at him. "I think you got out of there with minimal injury. You're lucky that that's all that's bandaged up." She swallowed hard as he walked towards her, "What's that look for?"

Killian smiled at her, not a cocky or smug grin – a genuine smile. One that few had had the privilege to see over the past three hundred miles. "What look?"

"That look-" Emma gestured towards his face, feeling her cheeks heating under his gaze. He looked smitten, that was what that look was. It made her feel uncomfortable because she knew it was written all over her face too.

"I knew you'd save me." He wasn't the same haughty pirate that she'd last seen.

"What made you think that?" Emma licked her lips, flinching slightly as he stepped even closer.

"Because you're like me-"

"I'm no-"

"Shh." He pressed his finger to her lips, silencing her. "Because you love a challenge just like I do. You knew that what I had said meant the opposite." Killian stared at her lips as he drew his finger across them, "You were the bean."

"I know." Emma brushed his hand away, "But if you decide to call me that, I might be inclined to wound the other side of your head."

"I'll remember that." Killian gave a short chuckle before he dipped his head in and place a chaste kiss to her lips, testing the waters.

"What was that?" Emma's brows rose high, feeling her flush spread over her body.

"Thank you?" He offered with a hopeful smile.

Emma forced herself to frown, despite how hard the muscles in her cheeks protested. "Clearly you weren't all that thankful."

"Gods, Emma don't tempt a man." Killian gave her a wicked smirk; his finger cupped the back of her neck as he pulled her into another kiss, this one lacking the hesitance of a nervous man. This was something that he had thought of during the past two weeks – kissing Emma. She had drawn up emotions and desires that he hadn't felt since Milah had been alive and thought she was no Milah, he was thankful that the comparisons between the two were hard to find.

Maybe she was more of an open book than she had realized. Or maybe, just maybe, he could read her so easily because they were part of the same book. Gold hadn't been bluffing however much she had wished he had been, or at least she had been wishing that right up until this point.

Killian pulled back for oxygen, pressing his forehead against hers to keep them close, not quite ready to relinquish her warmth when he had been imagining it for so long. "What did he make you do for my safety?"

"He wanted my necklace." Emma said softly, confusion lacing her voice. "That was all he wanted."

"That doesn't make any sense." Killian met her eyes warily, "That's all he made you trade?" He cupped her cheek, brushing his thumb along the hollow of her cheek.

Emma nodded, "Yes." She ran her hands over his shoulders, "As much as part of me would like to just continue standing here and kissing you." Emma pulled away from him, knowing that if they continued it was going to go too far too fast. "I need to get down to the station and finish some paperwork."

"I could have died."

Emma cocked a brow, "But you didn't." She nodded her head towards the sofa, "Rest."

"Aye, aye captain." Killian smirked at her, "But know – I'll be _thinking_ of you."

* * *

Gold stood, hunched over his desk. "Manhattan." He muttered to himself as his fingers stroked over the swan emblem on the necklace. The spell had worked. "Belle," He glanced over his shoulder, smiling at the brunette, "I've done it. I've found my boy."


	2. Chapter 2

Rumors spread around Storybrooke like wildfires. Gold had kidnapped Killian, Emma had rescued him, and Gold had left the town with Belle. No one knew what had prompted his exodus, but many assumed it was the threat of prison thanks to his little hostage stint. But there was a larger problem with his exodus – he could leave. The curse that kept them within the town had ended. _Somehow_.

While everyone else attempted to discover what had broken that particular curse, Emma and Killian kept safe the little secret that the breaking of the curse most likely had everything to do with them.

"If the curse is broken, then is the world at large going to have to deal with Cora?" Mary Margaret pressed her palms against the counter, looking around the pawn shop idly. For once they could all see what Gold had harbored from their homes, without the threat of him attempting to make a deal.

Killian crossed his arms, leaning against the wall, "She's only after Regina."

David gave the pirate a skeptical glance, speaking quietly to Emma, "And you're sure you can trust him?"

"Yes." Without an ounce of hesitance, Emma brushed past her father walking over to examine a map that was curled up between two books on the bookcase. "Everything on this book case is covered in dust, except for this map."

"Clever Swan," Killian winked at her, pushing himself away from the wall and heading over towards the map. "Now, allow me to investigate this one, I'm an expert at maps." He smirked at both of the Charmings, his cocky attitude practically oozing off of him.

"So you're going to be able to understand a map of North America?" Emma looked up at him from beneath her lashes as she unfurled the map across the counter.

"Look," Mary Margaret spoke, pointing to pin holes that littered the paper. "He's had markers in it."

"You're right I have no idea what this land is." Killian resisted the urge to rest his arm around Emma's waist as he leaned against the counter beside her. "Where are we right now, lass?"

"Here." Emma tapped the coast of Maine, where Storybrooke roughly was.

"Do all of these marks mean anything?" David questioned as he spread his hand out between several of the points. "Vancouver, Richmond, Knoxville, Bon Temps, Tallahassee, Manhattan."

Emma's eyes widened as she stared at the map, "That doesn't make sense."

"What doesn't, lass?" Killian gave her a curious look, a flash of worry in his eyes at the frown creasing her brow.

Emma's hand went to her neck, where her necklace typically sat, "This doesn't make any sense, why should this matter to Gold." It made her feel ill to think that Gold might have been investigating that part of her life.

"Do these places mean something to you?" Mary Margaret reached her hand out and took ahold of Emma's, concerning marring her face at Emma's expression.

"I.. Neal.. He's lived in all of those places. I did a search on him a couple years back. Last I knew was that he'd moved to Manhattan or something."

"Neal?" Killian questioned with a hint of jealous in his tone.

Emma ran her finger over the word Tallahassee, "He was Henry's father. He was the whole reason I ended up in jail, why I lost Henry." She shook her head, "I was a kid, I was stupid, I thought I was in love. I'm not doing that all over again."

Hook tensed at her words – one, he would have to find this Neal himself and kill him and two, did she truly mean she wouldn't do _love_ again? "Well, what has the Crocodile got with this man, then?"

"I don't know."

"His son." David looked up at Emma, "He's been searching for his son and… Neal."

"Bloody hell." Killian scratched the back of his neck with a hesitant laugh. "Well, isn't the world a funny place." Emma turned to look at him, "I told you about Milah lass." He nodded his head towards his arm where the tattoo was. "She was Rumplestiltskin's wife."

Emma's eyes widened, "Wait, your lover was possibly… Neal's mother?"

"The map's making it seem so. Did the trinket he took from you mean anything?" Killian held her gaze for a moment before she broke it.

"Neal gave it to me." That pretty much confirmed what they were assuming. Neal, was Gold's son and they left town to find him. "Dammit." Emma rubbed her hands over her face. "This is not what I need right now."

"I'm sorry, love." Killian brushed his hand quickly across her back, before stepping around her. He rarely believed that the fates had a hand in his life, but this coincidence seemed awfully meaningful. Milah's son had been Emma's lover. The world was a cruel place.

"Where are you going?" Emma moved a little too fast, a little too anxiously not to attract her parent's attention. She caught Hook by the arm, keeping him from leaving.

"Well, all of your discussions seemed like family matters." He was fighting hard not to sound dejected and it had nothing to do with her familial conversations, but everything to do with that one little comment. "I thought I'd excuse myself."

"You don't have to go." Emma shook her head, brows creasing together as she studied his face. What had she done to hurt him? She swallowed shakily, glancing over her shoulder at her parents. "Unless you want to go." She stepped back awkwardly, releasing his arm quickly.

Killian tilted his head, lowering his voice as if the Charmings couldn't hear him. "Do _you_ want me to stay?"

Emma's eyes went to the floor. "Yeah."

_I'm not doing that all over again._

"Lass, I think I'm going to go anyways. I've got a ship to check on!" He tried to feign enthusiasm as he gave her a sympathetic smile, before heading towards the door. He didn't look back, because he didn't want to see her face.

* * *

"Where exactly do you think you're going?" Emma called from the docks as she watched Killian working on the riggings of his ship. "That doesn't look like 'checking my ship'."

Killian looked quite surprised as Emma took it upon herself to board his ship without a second thought. A trait that he quite appreciated in her. "Do you want the 'truth' that you'll see is a lie or the truth you'll wish is a lie?"

Emma put her hands on her hips, "I'd like you to be honest with me Killian."

"This, between us," Killian gestured between them with his hook. "Is there a _real_ chance for us? I mean you said it yourself that you weren't interested in doing this all over again." He frowned as he kept going, unloading the lot of what he had been mulling over for the last few hours. "This Neal bloke is going to show up, you're going to get old feelings for him and realize I'm not what you want. After all, I'm fairly certain he's the reason you chained me to the top of a beanstalk." He didn't give Emma a chance to speak, "Besides, think on this one. Your lad's grandmother was my lover for ten years."

"I'd prefer not to, thanks." Emma's rolled her eyes, trying to keep her irritation at bay. "What the hell has gotten into you Hook?" She dropped the Killian aspect of his name, merely out of frustration.

"_You_." Killian growled out. "But you're not interested in this."

"Did you completely misunderstand my comment about Neal?" Emma stepped towards him, taking ahold of his hook. "What I was implying with my comment was that I'm not interested in doing that again with him. I'm not seventeen anymore and I'd like to think I'm not an idiot anymore."

"I would concur with that, you're definitely not an idiot, lass." Killian gave her a small smile, reaching out to cup her cheek. "Do you realize something rather ironic?"

Emma shook her head, resting her hand over his. "What am I supposed to realize?"

"Our little kiss broke that curse, right?"

"And we're keeping that secret."

"Yes. But, Gold told you about it right? He planted that seed in your head."

"Yes…? Where are you going with this?"

Killian cocked a brow, "He did that so he could leave town to find his son."

"And he knew that I would look to him went you missing… Dammit, how does he do this?" Emma couldn't help but laugh, running her fingers through her hair. "Also, don't be worried about Neal."

"He's Henry's father."

"He lost the right to be Henry's father when he left me."

"Did he know about Henry?"

Emma slapped his arm, "Stop trying to be a voice of reason."

"Ah, so he's going to come back with his Papa-dearest and find out that you are here with his kid." Killian crossed his arms across his chest. "And I'll be trapped in the middle again."

"Stop going for mother's then." Emma retorted with a wry little smirk.

"I'm not going to need to anymore." Killian gave a wicked grin when she fluttered her eyes in surprise. "I've already got the one I want."

"You're incorrigible." Emma laughed, playfully pulling back as he leaned in to kiss her. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to kiss you, hold still, love." Killian raised her brows when she pulled back again. "What is this?"

"We're in public."

"And a half a step away from my quarter's," The pirate, hook his hook into her belt loop, giving her a tug towards the door that led into his quarter's. "As you were saying?"

Emma looked around in surprise, "Well, I wasn't expecting this."

"What?" Killian stared at her questioningly, resting his hand at the curve of her hip. "Ending up in here with me?"

"Yes." The sheriff grinned up at him, moving to rest her arms behind his neck. She stroked the fingers at the nape of his neck, leaning up to press her lips to his. It was thrilling to catch him off guard, feeling the way he gasped against her lips before responding to the kiss.

Killian pulled back from the kiss, letting his lips brush against hers as he tangled his fingers in her hair. "Do you really believe that what's between us is-"

"Let's not say it out loud and jinx it." Emma blushed, bumping her forehead to his. "I'm not wanting to risk this."

"Oh, do I mean something to you?" Killian gave her a charming grin, run his tongue across his bottom lip. "Am I important?"

"I mean, look what kissing the savior did for you."

"Oh, it did _a lot_ for me." His eyes lit up with mischief as he pulled her flush to him, leaning in to kiss along her jaw. "Emma Swan has anyone ever told you that you are highly desirable?'

Emma started laugh, unwinding herself from his hold. "Has anyone ever told you no?"

Killian furrowed his brows, his lips pursed as he stared at her. "That's playing dirty."

"I have things to do."

"You have _someone_ to do."

Emma rolled her eyes, "I'd be more willing to if you hadn't been set to leave town when I came over here. Just for that you're getting a big fat no."

"I thought you didn't want to do this." Killian retorted with a pout. "I was upset, sailing is cathartic."

"You were going to leave."

"My name's not Neal."

Emma narrowed her eyes, crossing her arms across her chest. That was a rather low thing to throw out at her. "Really?" Then it dawned her, his whole behavior suddenly made sense. "Are you jealous?"

"No." Killian answer quickly, before realizing she'd caught him. "Perhaps."

"Should I be flattered? I'm not getting back together with Neal, whether he comes back with Gold or not. I'm not that girl anymore, I'm not like that anymore. It's not going to happen. You have nothing to worry about."

"I best not, because I'd hate to have to string up Milah's son." Killian cracked a small smile, his gaze subconsciously going to his arm. Perhaps the whole reason that Neal had left was because he'd been as afraid to be a father as Milah had been to be a mother, he followed her behavior and had left Emma. But Emma wasn't a coward or a failure like Rumplestiltskin. Emma was brave and bold and courageous. There was every chance Neal's abandonment had been caused by Killian's arrival in Milah's life.

"Are you going to come back to town with me?"

"Isn't that going to look suspicious?" Killian winked at her. "The savior of Storybrooke sauntering into town with the lecherous Captain Hook."

"You said it, not me." Emma matched his wink before turning on her heels and heading towards the door. "I'll see you around Killian."

"Oh yes you will be."


	3. Chapter 3

Mary Margaret gave her daughter a shrewd little smile as she sat down across from her, watching her eat her breakfast for a moment before she spoke, "So you and Captain Hook." It wasn't exactly a question and it wasn't quite a statement, but more a leading observation to gage the blonde's response.

Emma coughed, choking on a crumb of toast that she sucked in, in surprise. "What?" Her eyes widened as she looked across the table at her mother. "I have no idea what you're getting at."

"I wasn't _getting_ at anything Emma, but apparently you think there's reason for me too." Mary Margaret smirked, looking quite pleased with herself. "So what's going on Emma?"

"Nothing." Her mother was attempting to beat her at her own game. Emma took a long gulp of orange juice, adverting her eyes. "Nothing is going on."

"Oh really?" The brunette laughed, rolling her eyes. "You're constantly trying to uphold his name and I'm well aware of _that_ look."

"What look?" Emma felt her cheeks flush and she started coughing again to hide it. She honestly did not like this feeling right now. It felt like what she'd always imagined being questioned by your mother about boys would feel like.

"You look at Hook-"

Emma couldn't help but correct her, "Killian."

Mary Margaret grinned, "You look at Killian the exact same way that I looked at your father when I first started to fall in love with him."

"I'm _not_ in love with him." The flutter in her heart told her otherwise but the last time she checked Snow White wasn't a mind reader. But who the hell even knew anymore.

"That was the most unconvincing answer I have ever heard. You might want to try harder if you plan on making that believable." Her brows arched and she grinned mischievously at her daughter, "If you're interested in having a little _alone_ time with him, all you have to do is ask. David and I can watch Henry for you and-"

"Stop, stop, just no. We're not going there right now." Emma ran her hands over her face in frustration, letting out heavy sigh. "Do we have to have this conversation?"

"Yes. Oh, come on, you need a little something in your life."

"It's not a _little_ something, okay?"

Mary Margaret looked puzzled, "What do you mean?" Then her eyes widened suddenly, "You don't mean…?"

Emma stared down at her half-eaten toast, "That's exactly what I mean. It's just a lot to think about right now. What with the possibility of Gold brining Neal here, with Cora still on the lose ready to attack when we're least expecting it, and then there's _this_."

"I knew I recognized that look. At the pawn shop the other day, the way he looked at you wasn't not just simple attraction. Oh, Emma." She reached across the table and squeezed Emma's hand, giving her a sympathetic smile.

"Like I don't have enough to deal with." Emma gave a bitter laugh, shaking her head. "And it's partially the reason why Neal's going to end up here."

"What do you mean?"

"When Gold was holding Killian hostage and I went to confront him, he told me that I had the look of True Love in my eyes when I was talking about Killian. He made a deal, which seemed stupid at the time, but he made me trade my necklace for his life. Planting that little seed in my mind is what made my defenses drop for Killian and we kissed." Emma rubbed her temples, willing away the migraine that was starting to creep up on her. "That kiss broke the curse that was keeping everyone inside the town."

Mary Margaret's lips parted with a little gasp, "Gold knew that he could use that to go and find his son."

"I mean," Emma's brows creased together in frustration, "It's not like Gold forced Killian and I together to be True Loves, but he used it to his benefit. And he knew that Neal was connected to my past." She closed her eyes, resting her elbows on the table and burying her face in her hands. "I just didn't want that part of my life to come back."

"Just because he shows up in town doesn't mean you have to be with him again, Emma."

"Like Hell I don't." Emma snapped, "I've known exactly where he was for the past few years and I had no interest in contacting him or even being in the same city as him. This town isn't big enough to avoid him."

"If he truly is Gold' son, he's not going to just let you keep Henry away from him." She warned softly, folding her hands in her lap. She hated seeing Emma looking this distraught.

"And I'm afraid to get too attached to Killian before this whole mess comes to town." Emma bit down on her bottom lip, "Because Killian's a factor in both Gold and Neal's past – something that's not exactly a good thing. There's a lot of bad blood right there."

"True Love can conquer all _if_ you let it happen Emma." The wisdom in her mother's voice struck her, "You can't turn your back on him now."

"Why? We've both turned out backs on each other before."

"But did you look back?"

Emma hesitated, the memory of the beanstalk flashing in her memory. She had looked back once, to see that broken look on his face – a look that she was certain was written on her face when he looked back at her at the cell. "Yes."

"Keep your eyes on what you want, Emma. If you believe in him, don't turn your back on him."

* * *

"You know, lass, calling for an impromptu visit like this, with a cryptic message like '_we need to talk – it's important'_ can make a man panic." Killian sank down on the edge of the sofa, giving Emma a hesitant sideways glance. "The silence can do the same."

"Sorry," Emma pushed her fingers into her hair, chewing on the inside of her lip nervously. "You can blame my mother for making me this antsy."

"You're not antsy," The pirate pointed out, "You're still, that's unsettling." He reached his hand out to touch hers, a frown marring his expression when she flinched away. "Right, so are my assumptions correct?"

"Probably not, it depends on what you think this is." Emma turned, tucking her feet up beneath her as she leaned back against the sofa.

"Well I'm assuming that you're here to tell me that you're not interested in _us_ any longer." His voice was cold, trying to stave off the hurt in his tone. "Is that what you're here for?"

"I-.." The sheriff met his blue eyes, wondering if the confusion there was his alone or hers reflected in his eyes. "No, that's not why I'm here. Complete opposite actually." She feigned a small smile, "Manhattan's not that far away from here, Gold will be back any day and he'll probably have _him_ with him." Emma dropped her gaze, "None of this is going to be easy."

"If this isn't a goodbye you're making it sound an awful lot like one." Killian frowned, studying Emma carefully. "Alright lass, what is it?"

Emma met his eyes, placing her hand on his leg and her other on the curve of his neck. She leaned in, pressing her lips to his in a gentle kiss, a hesitant kiss. Killian allowed it to stay simple, unconsciously allowing her to control it, unlike the ones that he enjoyed to lead. Emma's fingertips danced across the back of his neck, brushing the hair that crew at the base of his hairline. He wasn't sure where he was going with this, but he was rather comforted by it – this didn't feel like a parting of ways.

Her lips pulled back from his, letting them both catch a breath before she caught his lips with a little more force this time. Her tongue pressed between his lips, brushing over his teeth before their tongues tangled against each other, silently warring back and forth. Killian curled his arm around her, pulling her closer to him, crushing her against his chest. Her teeth scraped his bottom lip, eliciting a groan from the back of his throat as he found her slipping her leg over his lap and settling down atop him. The fates were testing him.

Killian's fingers brushed along the curve of her waist, drawing her shirt up as he went. He relished in the fact that his touch alone had made her shiver, arching into her hips against him. He wasn't sure what game she was playing, but he was more than willing to play it. She started to pull back and he caught himself following her lips in an attempt to keep the kissing going, forgetting the burn in his lungs that protested.

"Killian..?" Emma's breaths came out in little pants as her eyes met his with drowsy lust. "I want you."

The pirate gave a low chuckle, brushing his hand over her hair – he knew that tone. "But?"

"This isn't what I asked you here for." Her spirit faltered as she met his eyes, swallowing shakily as she sat back against his legs, trying to piece back together some semblance of a working mind that wasn't clouded by desire. "Gold's a dangerous man and we both know he'll stop at nothing to harm those who oppose him." Emma's fingers traced over his temple were the faintest scar could be seen peeping out from his hairline.

"I know that better than I'm willing to admit." Killian frowned, feeling the sickening weight of Milah's body in his arms as he curled them protectively around Emma. "I'll die before I let him hurt you like he did Milah."

Emma shook her head, "I'd prefer it if you didn't die trying to fight my battles."

"The Crocodile was _my_ battle."

"And Neal is mine and it just so happens that they're part of the same story."

Killian's voice turned to a dark tone as his brows furrowed together, "You don't know what it feels like to hold someone in your arms as they're life is wrenched out them without reason."

"Yes I do." Emma pressed her lips together, her teeth digging into the inside of her bottom lip. "There was a man named Graham-"

"The old sheriff?"

"I-.. yes." Emma didn't care to ask how he knew, it didn't matter. "He died in the station, in my arms, after we kissed." The smallest smile curved her lips, the memory of that kiss dancing across thoughts before it went all wrong. "It was Regina, she was jealous."

"Oh, love." Killian cupped her cheek, his thumb brushing along the curve of her cheek.

"But I know what you mean when you talk about the weight of death in your arms." Emma ran her hands over his shoulders, leaning against his chest. "Don't make me relive that with you."

Hook cocked a brow, "Don't make _me_ relive that with you either."

Emma shook her head, "You don't have to worry about me. Cora couldn't get my heart out of my chest, it's safe to say that no one can."

"Bloody hell," Killian couldn't quite believe that. Out of everything he feared, the worst was losing someone he loved as he had lost Milah. He never wanted to relive that helplessness again. His fingers traced over the bare skin above the edge of her tank top, just above where her heart was. "I won't lose you like her."

"No, you won't." Emma leaned in and kissed him softly, "You're not going to be able to get rid of me now."

"Who said I wanted to?" Killian's brows raised in amusement. "You're the one who gave me a heart attack thinking you were going to brush me off."

"Did I prove you wrong?" Her smirk was positively wicked. "Can you tell that I want you?"

"Oh yes," He growled, his hand gripping her hip hard enough to leave bruises. "But don't tease a man if you have no intentions of following through with it."

Despite his grip on her hip she pitched her hips against him, biting down on her bottom lip to keep back a moan that rose up in the back of her throat. "But doesn't teasing draw out the eventual moment?"

"Lass, if you're not careful that moment is going to come a hell of a lot faster than you want it to."

Emma leaned in and kissed him hard, her teeth dragging across his bottom lip. Now didn't sound all that bad – not with how tightly coiled the desire in her stomach was. His arm was wrapped around her waist and he had her on back against the cushions before she could even protest.

"_Killian_." She moaned as he settled his weight between her legs. Now it was his turn to be the tormenter, bucking against her just to see her writhe. His lips were against hers for only a moment before her cellphone started ringing, interrupting their moment.

"Don't get that-"

"I'm the sheriff, I'm obligated." She fumbled for her phone, answering it without checking caller ID. "Emma Swan, can I help you?"

There was silence for a moment before the caller spoke, "Emma…?"

Emma's eyes widened, her world coming to a halt as she recognized that voice. "_Neal_."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/n: **I'm not lying when I say that you will all despise me when this fic is over with.

* * *

"Fucking Neal," Killian groaned as Emma finally hung up the phone. Her eyes were wide, the shock of the short interchange setting in. "What did _he_ want?" The pirate's voice was tense with dreaded anticipation. He would really hate to have to harm Milah's child for the sake of Emma. He didn't even know the man, but just from Emma's actions on the beanstalk, he knew he wasn't going to like him.

Emma rubbed her temples, "He'll be here in the morning."

"That was all he called to say?"

"Well he also brought up the fact that his _father_ brought up the fact that he's also a father." There was a child like petulance about her as she crossed her arms across her chest, leaning back against the sofa with a heavy sigh.

Killian wrapped his arm behind the small of her back, pulling her into his side. He pressed a kiss to the top of her head, inhaling deeply. "What was the whole '_I don't think that's going to happen_' part?"

"Eavesdropping much?" Emma arched her brow, rolling her eyes.

"I could only hear your half of the conversation, I'm curious."

She tilted her head, resting her chin against his shoulder. "Well, he certainly went to the School of Gold when it comes to thinking. He felt the need to bring up 'Now we can finally be a family'. Which isn't going to happen."

Killian's heart sank, "But if it's the best for your lad."

"_No_." Emma gritted, stroking her fingers over his leg. "That's not going to happen. He's a coward. If you really care about someone you stay."

"I can see why he was with you." He brushed his lips against her forehead, a certain sadness in his eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"When you say things like that you remind me of Milah." Killian closed his eyes, turning his head away from her. He could be blamed for Neal's willingness to run off, he'd clearly learned that from his mother. "But it's not the obvious kind of commonalities, there's far more different about you than there is the same. I'm sure her son was looking for a woman like his mother."

Emma brushed her knuckles against his cheek, frowning when he flinched away. Her voice wavered as she spoke quietly, "Did you think that she was the one?"

Killian shook his head, "I didn't believe in the whole 'One True Love' stint. Not until recently." His eyes met hers, icy blue eyes boring into her skin. "Not until you."

"Killian-"

"Don't," He silenced her with a kiss, pouring himself out in the simple gesture. "Miss Swan how long has it been since you were last _ravished_?"

Emma let out an embarrassed laugh, her cheeks turning pink under his hungry eyes, "Two years."

"Oh," Killian shook his head, "That just won't do."

"And how long has it been for you? An infamous pirate like you, I'm sure you rari-"

"I believe it's been over ninety-eight years." Killian smirked at her surprise, "Ah, you see revenge is time consuming, leaves very little room to get laid."

"But, you… Don't look…"

"But _I am_ and I'm slowly creeping up on three and a half centuries." He kissed her again, pulling her onto his lap, "Now, where were we before the phone rang?" Killian tangled his fingers in her hair, dragging her down into a slow building kiss.

Emma pulled back from his lips, trying to speak. "I should-" His lips were against hers again, silencing her, "I have things-"

"Lass, you're going to have a truly fiendish week to look forward to come tomorrow morning." He arched a brow, feigning wisdom as he spoke. "You're going to be coiled up tight, stressed and irritated. Wouldn't you care to be ravished right now? Take your mind off what's to come? Start afresh with your stress levels?"

Emma's lips parted with a gasp as his words and the tone he used giving way to the yearning inside of her building up again. The roguish grin and the gruff of his voice seemed design to strike her straight to the core. "You're just afraid that you're going to have to wait another ninety-eight years." She teased, sliding her hands over his broad shoulders.

"Oh, I'm less concerned about my dry spell ending." Killian smirked up at her, his hand sliding beneath her shirt, his fingers spreading across her stomach, seeking out little spots that made her shudder. "But I'm very concerned about yours coming to an end."

"Well, you mentioned ravishing." She cocked her head to one side, the muscles of her stomach trembling beneath his touch and making her words waver. "I don't think you can properly ravish me here."

Without a word Killian hooked his arms beneath her ass as he hauled her upright in his arms. He kissed her hard as he started to walk blindly towards her bedroom, knowing only the basic layout of her apartment and trusting that little knowledge to find her bed.

* * *

Emma curled close to Killian, her fingers brushing over the dark hair that covered his chest. She was far to sated to even think about getting up yet, satisfied enough to just want to lay beside him and rest in the afterglow. Killian had been a far more gracious lover than she'd expected. She hadn't exactly pegged him for being vain in bed, but she hadn't expected the lengths he would go to make sure she was on the edge of oblivion from every different angle before he'd even think about his own needs.

She could still feel the burn of his lips against her skin, the tickle of his scruff as he sought out every sensitive spot she possessed, working each spot like separate instruments that he planned to master. She might have been exaggerating – it had been awhile after all.

Killian's arm tightened around her waist, pulling her to him with a low rumble as he muttered her name. He wasn't quite asleep any longer, but he had no interest in opening his eyes and admitting defeat as the evening sun streaked in through the curtains. She had things she needed to do and rolling around in bed with him was not one of them.

"Did you enjoy yourself?" Killian rubbed his fingers along the curve of her hip, pressing his face into her hair.

"More than I expected too." She teased, pressing a kiss to his throat. "Though I have to ask, when was the last time you slept that well?"

Killian opened his eye a peak, "Why?"

"Because you were out cold afterwards. You slept like a deadman."

"It's been awhile." He replied stiffly, bringing her with him as he sat upright. "How long did I sleep."

"Three hours." Emma replied, glancing at the clock on the bedside – she needed to head over to her parent's house soon. "I'm going to have to get up."

"_No_." The pirate whined, holding her hip a little tighter. "I don't want you to leave yet."

She kissed him softly before replying with a quick. "Tough." She pried his hand off of her, scooting to the edge of the bed and searching around for her discarded clothes. "And Killian…?"

Killian uncovered his face, giving her a sideways glance. "Yeah?"

"This is one room where I don't want to talk about _him_. I want this to be our escape." She bit down on her bottom lip as she met his eyes. "Because I feel like I'm going to need escape right now and I haven't even talked to anyone yet."

"I can accommodate that." Killian gave her a heartfelt smile as he nodded for her to get up, "You have a kid to go and talk to, fix your sex-hair."

"Aye, aye Captain."

* * *

"What's up mom?" Henry looked up from his homework as Emma walked through the front door, shucking her coat off and hanging it on the coat rack.

Despite the considerable amount of time she had spent on making herself look presentable, taming the sex-hair and wearing a shirt that hit the hickey on her shoulder, the smirk on her mother's lips told her that Snow White was one extremely perceptive fairytale character. And it was almost worse knowing that when they were both friends and not mother-daughter, Emma had divulged the fact that she hadn't slept with anyone in almost two years. There were some things that mothers didn't need to know.

"Henry you and I need to have a talk." Emma grabbed a chair from the other side of the table, dragging it around to sit beside Henry's chair. "That math homework is going to have to wait," She forced a pathetic excuse for a smile.

"You look really unhappy, what's wrong?" Henry closed his workbook, looking up at Emma nervously. The last time she'd looked like this she had told him that his other mother had killed Archie. "Has _she_ done something again?"

"No," Emma shook her head, her lips drawing into a thin line as she tried to think of something to say that made sense. "Well… it's about your father."

"What about him?"

"He's um," Emma bit her bottom lip and looked down, "He's coming to Storybrooke."

"Really?" Henry's eyes widened. "But I thought he wasn't…" He tilted his head to the side, his brows furrowing together. "So he's alive?"

"Yeah," Emma frowned, "He's not the man I told you about once upon a time. That was the story that hurt less to tell, but I guess the truth has a way of finding you."

"Why's he coming to town?"

"He's Gold's son."

"He's Balefire!" Henry exclaimed, nearly jumping out of his seat. "Whoa, whoa, wait a minute. You're telling me that you _somehow_ found a fairytale character all on your own before?"

"Apparently, but Henry-"

"This is great mom!" The boy hugged her before she could finish. "Now we can be a family!"

Emma met Mary Margaret's gaze, her mother's concerned expression giving her no assurance. "It's not that simple Henry." She started quietly, "Your father hurt me pretty bad, not physically of course, but he abandoned me. I don't see us getting back together again."

"Maybe he's your True Love though! You know like Snow White and Prince Charming and how they could always find each other." Henry gave her a hopeful smile, the prospect of being a family finally was almost too exciting for him.

"It's not like that Henry." Emma shook her head, cupping the boy's cheek. "He's… not my True Love."

"How do you know?" Henry frowned, his shoulders sinking. "Maybe you're wrong."

"Finding out who my True Love was is the whole reason all of this has happened, kid." Emma leaned back against the chair. "Gold found out about your father being his son and he used me to get the curse to break so he could leave. It was True Love's kiss that broke the curse keeping everyone in town."

Henry's nose scrunched up, "But who?"

"I-…" Emma hesitated, "Killian."

"_Captain Hook_?" Henry stared at her in surprise. "Didn't you ever read Peter Pan? He's not a good guy mom!"

"I'm aware of that, but… he's not exactly the Hook in the book."

"Didn't he try to hurt Belle?"

Emma looked up at Mary Margaret, "He's not allowed to go patrolling with David anymore."

"I concur," Snow replied, lifting her mug to her lips and drinking a long gulp of tea. "Henry, you need to trust your mother's judgment about Killian." She couldn't exactly say she had been completely for Killian, but if he was making her daughter happy – that was what mattered to her. She didn't want Emma to regret turning something down that could be right for her.

Henry shifted in his chair, his eyes cast down. "I'll give him a chance I guess."

"Thanks kid," Emma nudged him in the arm, smiling at him hesitantly. "How about this, after tomorrow and you meeting Neal, I'll have you and Killian meet up and hang out."

"So my dad's name's Neal?" Henry seemed more focused on that point over the whole Captain Hook aspect of the conversation.

"Yes it is." Emma said tightly, pushing her fingers through her hair. This just proved that no matter how much she wanted her past to just die, to leave her be – it wasn't going to. Neal, whether she liked it or not, was Henry's father. There was something he had said on the phone, that she'd left out when she was talking to Killian about it. Something that troubled her.

_You don't know the whole story about why I left, Emma. _


	5. Chapter 5

"Here you go kid," Emma pushed a mug of hot chocolate towards Henry as she sank down in the booth beside him. There was not enough hot chocolate in the world to help her get through this morning. From the last ETA she'd received from Neal, they'd be over the line in less than thirty minutes. It was nice to know exactly when she should expect them, but the fact that Neal sounded so excited on the other side of the line made her wish that they would just show up unexpectedly.

"Does my dad like hot chocolate?" Henry asked with a hopeful grin as he took a sip of the drink.

"Yeah," Emma nodded, keeping the answer short. In fact, Neal was the whole reasons he took hot chocolate with cinnamon on top. "He does."

"This is going to be great! The three of us can come here and have hot chocolate every morning before I go to school."

Emma smiled, letting the kid have his dreams. She was more than willing to let Neal have a chance to connect with his son, but there were limits to what she would do. There was no way in hell she was going spend more than the necessary time with Neal. He could tell her his sob story for why he left and then that was that. She wasn't seventeen anymore.

"Look!" Henry pointed out the window, "It's Gold's car." The car rolled down the road, stopping in front of the diner.

There was Neal.

Emma scooted out of the booth, Henry following behind her. "Come on, let's get this over with." She really didn't want to sound this begrudging, but the fact of the matter was she wasn't overly fond of facing people who had hurt her.

"Emma," Neal smiled at her as he stepped out of the car, that same wide-mouthed grin he'd given her when they first met. "And-" His eyes fell on Henry and there was a moment of hesitance. "You're Henry, right?"

Henry nodded with a little cocky grin on his face that hid his nervousness. "That's me." He took a few slow steps across the pavement before tackling his father with a hug. The kid certainly wasn't shy when it came to family reunions.

"He's a good looking kid Emma, takes after you." Neal met Emma's eyes as he pulled back from the hug, "Why you standing all the way over there – I thought this was a family reunion?"

"I'm fine right here." Emma crossed her arms across her chest, putting her defenses up. It wouldn't have been so bad, seeing him again, if there wasn't the smallest niggle in her heart that reminded her of all of those old feelings. She _had_ loved him and the emphasis was now on the past tense.

Neal nodded, "I understand, babe." He put two hands on Henry's shoulders and looked down at him, "Now how about the three of us have a bite to eat? I skipped breakfast this morning."

"When have you ever not skipped breakfast?" Emma quipped before she could catch herself. The fact that Neal had used _babe_ bad her skin crawl with irritation, but there wasn't exactly anything she could do about it. She wasn't going to correct him in front of Henry.

Gold finally spoke after casually standing beside his car and watching the interchange. His whole demeanor had seemed to change with finding his son. "You can find Belle and I at my pawn shop when you're done." He put a hand on Neal's back, gesturing down the street to the shop.

"I'll be down there after lunch; we still have a lot of catching up to do." Neal smiled, releasing his hold on Henry to hug his own father quickly.

"Enjoy your time with your boy."

* * *

Emma wasn't sure if she should be pleased or disappointed with the fact that lunch had gone really well. Neal was still Neal. He still possessed all of the qualities that on hindsight Emma had come to loath. But Henry seemed to be enjoying himself and Emma wasn't going to deny the kid a chance to know his father. Little quirks in his personality made Emma think of Killian, the charming smiles and the playful banter – all of the attributes that had made her shut down on the beanstalk. He wasn't Killian though and the attraction was no longer there.

"Hey, Henry do you mind if your mother and I talk alone?" Neal asked; nudging the kid in the side as the conversation started to die down.

"Are you two going to be having 'grown up talk'?"

"I think we are," Emma's brows rose as she looked at Neal skeptically, "Can I trust you to go to the Sheriff's station and hang out with David?"

"Only if you let me wear your badge." Henry bit his bottom lip, giving Emma a very demanding glare.

"Nope, hit the road kid." Emma laughed, "Ask him if you can wear his when you get there."

"Fine." Henry whined scooting out of the booth, "And I will be seeing you later." He pointed at Neal with a wide-grin, one that was not so far off from Neal's own grin, before he bolted out of the diner.

"He's a great kid." Neal nodded his head towards where Henry had been sitting.

"It had nothing to do with me." Emma shrugged, wrapping her hands around her mug and staring out the window. "What was it that you wanted to talk about?"

"Us."

"There is no _us_." Emma corrected quickly, her eyes shooting to meet his. "And if this is some half-hearted apology I really don't want that either."

"I left to protect you." Neal sounded eerily sincere. "This guy showed up and told me you had some big destiny to accomplish and I didn't factor in."

"But jail factored in?" Her brows creased together in frustration. "_Sure_ it did."

"I know, Emma, I know. Eleven months and not a word from me."

"The police were _tipped off_ about the whole thing. Seriously? If you had to leave me you could have avoided doing that."

"It was the only way that I could make sure you wouldn't try to find me, Emma." He reached across the table to take her hands, but she pulled away. "Babe, I'm sorry for what I had to do."

"You feel guilty about it, there's a big difference."

Neal rubbed the back of his neck, shaking his head. "Of course I felt guilty Emma! I feel even worse about all of this now that I know you were pregnant! We could have been a family."

"One of us would have gone to jail eventually." Emma pointed out bluntly. "When I look back on that whole ordeal I see how truly fucked up it all was."

"We were like Bonnie and Clyde."

"Yeah," Emma shook her head with a disinterested sigh. "They were shot and killed I believe. That's exactly the life Henry should have grown up in."

"You know what I mean, babe." Neal smiled at her weakly, "I'm just wanting to do what's right for Henry. I'm telling you, the story you think you knew all of these years isn't true. Leaving you killed me. I would have tried to find you, but you had all of this to fix."

"But you knew about magic! You could have helped me believe sooner." Emma pointed out, his smile only proving to make her more pissed at him. "Neal, look me in the eyes and tell me that leaving me was actually _hard_."

Neal met her eyes as he spoke, but he blinked so frequently while he spoke that Emma knew that everything was just as she'd assumed. "It killed me to leave Emma. But I had to do what was right."

"You were afraid that helping me would reunite you with your father." Her tone was sharp as she clenched her mug in her hand. "I know that Rumpelstilskin is the reason you left the Enchanted Forest and finding out that I was supposed to save everyone scared the hell out of you."

"That's not-"

"I'm going assume that cowardice runs in your family, I pray Henry doesn't pick up that attribute." Emma snapped coldly, releasing her mug to cross her arms across her chest.

"I loved you Emma," Neal said softly, wanting nothing more than to change the subject. "I never found another person who I cared about the way I cared about you."

"I never _really_ loved you Neal. You were a way out-"

"What the hell is _he_ doing here?" Neal ignored what Emma had just said, looking past her shoulder at the dark haired man who had just walked into the diner.

"Who?" Emma's jaw dropped slightly as she saw Killian walking up the counter to order. He looked towards her direction and frowned, realizing that he shouldn't be in there right then.

"He's the man who took my mother away from my father."

Killian exchanged a few words with Ruby before he headed back towards the door, leaving without ordering. He hadn't really been expecting to find Emma with Neal in the diner, to be honest he had tried to find out as little about their meeting as he could, not wanting to 'accidentally' turn up to stop it.

"The bastard," Neal hissed out, pushing himself out of the booth.

"Where are you going?"

"To go and have a word with him."

Emma jumped out of the booth, chasing after him as he headed out of the diner and after Killian. This was not what she needed today. Actually, of everything she had had to put up with today – this was the worst part of it.

"Look, I don't want a fight." Killian pursed his lips, trying his best to control his anger at the former thief, knowing what he had done to Emma only fueled his silent hatred. "It'd be best if you stopped _now_."

Neal gave an incredulous laugh, "You took my _mother_ away from my father."

Killian's lips curled up in a snarl, "_Milah_ left your father of her own free will! I offered her a place on my ship and she took it. And if my memory serves correct, she had offered him a second chance, to start somewhere else. I believe the _coward_ turned her down."

"She was _married_ to my fa-"

"She was married to a coward who was more willing to cower than to stand up for his wife."

"He tells a very different story." Neal bristled, turning around as Emma came down the alley way. "Emma." He gestured towards Killian, "How have you not locked this man up? Don't you know what he's done?"

Emma tilted her head to one side, her eyes narrowing, "Don't you know what Gold has done to him?"

"Done to _him_? He took my mother away from her family! Emma, don't you understand-"

She shook her head in disbelief, "Willingly leaving me and getting me sent to jail took _me_ away from whatever family I could have had. I really don't think you have any place to talk." Her jaw set hard as Neal turned around to face her.

"Are you standing up for him?" Neal's head canted to one side, "He's the reason my father went mad with the need for power, because he pulled my mother away from her family."

"Did you miss what the lass said _Baelfire_?" Killian's voice darkened with malice, "She said you'd done no better to her. Cowardice must run in your family's blood." With that little dig Neal swung at Killian, missing the pirate as he side-stepped the swing. "It'd be wise if you didn't throw punches at a man with a hook."

"Both of you _stop_." Emma snapped, moving to step in between them with little hesitance. "If this is a precursor to who you're going to act in town, I strongly recommend that you make your stay short – for Henry's sake."

"For Henry's sake?" Neal's brows creased as she stared at the blond in front of him.

Emma's hands went to her hips, "He's already seen too many people who care for him locked up for misdemeanors." Though the satisfaction of finally seeing Neal jailed was tempting, she didn't want Henry to deal with that.

"You're threatening me?" He rubbed the back of his neck. "You're _fucking_ kidding me Emma?"

"I'm not actually." Emma cocked a brow, "You can't come into this town and start throwing punches because of things that happened three hundred years ago. That's not how it works here. I don't give a shit what lies Gold was feeding you on the car ride – but Killian hasn't done anything wrong."

"He kidnapped Belle."

"Aye, that I did do." Killian butted in with a cheeky smirk, "But I think you'll find that I let her go unharmed. While your _lovely_ coward of a father held me hostage after beating the shit out of me with his cane." He crossed his arms across his chest. "I think you'll see an ocean of difference there."

"You're a son of a bastard."

Killian laughed darkly, "Better than being the son of a coward."

Neal balled his fists at his side, meeting Emma's eyes. "You're really standing here and saying that he's in the right."

"I'm standing here and saying that if_ either_ of you attacks the other, you're going to get locked up. I'm not playing games."

"I'm going to the pawn shop now, I don't need this." Neal stared at Emma a moment longer, his frustration evident on his face before he scurried out of the alley way before his resolve completely snapped.

Killian sneered, "Some man."

Emma reared back and slapped Killian across the face, her eyes lit with anger. "What were you playing at there?"

"Bloody hell," Killian rubbed his burning cheek, his brows furrowing together. "What was that for?"

"Were you trying to provoke him?" Emma snapped, crossing her arms across her chest. "Because that sure as hell looked like you were."

"I was defending the dead." Killian's lips drew into a thin line as he glared down at Emma. "So is that what it's going to be then?"

"What are you talking about?"

Killian's hook caught her belt loop and in one sudden motion he jerked her closer, "This. Are you going to get pissed off at him and take it out on me _every _time? I didn't sign up for that."

"You didn't sign up for anything Killian." Emma retorted, looking down to where his hook had caught her belt loop.

"That's the curious thing about magic, isn't it?" Killian used one finger to nudge her chin upright. "You don't get to choose."

"I guess that's the question then. Would you choose even if there wasn't magic?" Emma bit down on her bottom lip as she met his eyes, searching them for anything that said he regretted any of this.

"Good, you're actually looking at me this time. Now listen to me Swan," Killian leaned close, making sure there was no way she couldn't see his eyes. "I chose you."

"I knew you weren't done with me."


	6. Chapter 6

Emma slammed the door shut, trudging into her apartment with a heavy sigh, one that she'd held in for most of the evening. It had been_ awful_. A movie night – her, Henry, Neal, Belle, and Gold. It had been mostly Belle's idea, something to appease Gold and his desires for Henry and Neal to bond, but Henry had been insistent that Emma join them. The night had been fine enough, right up to the moment that Neal had tried – unsuccessfully – to kiss her. As if she hadn't made it abundantly clear that she wanted _nothing_ to do with him, he still went in for it. She'd left, prematurely, feigning feeling ill – which wasn't entirely untruthful.

"You're back early." Killian leaned against the wall, watching her toe off her shoes. "How was your evening?"

Emma stared at him for a moment, clenching and unclenching her fists before she pounced.

Was it wrong to use Killian as a diversion for the frustration and anger that was welled up inside of her? To use him to wash away the thoughts of _what if_ Neal had kissed her? It didn't feel so wrong because she genuinely cared and… loved Killian. And it had been almost a month since the last time they had time to be together.

Killian wrapped his arm around her back, pulling her flush to him as he leaned down into the kiss. Something must have happened that precipitated this, he almost didn't want to ask. He silently loathed that she seemed obligated to spend time with the father of her son. He didn't want to share her. She was_ his_.

Emma's fingers trailed along the row of buttons down his chest, a change of style that she loved seeing him in. Modern clothes, the button up shirts and slim cut pants, seemed to suit Killian _almost_ better than the clothes she'd first seen him in. The showy black chemises and the thick leather coat - they seemed to hide so much of him. Tucking her fingers beneath his shirt between two buttons and tugging sharply pulled the shirt off with the satisfying clatter of buttons as they hit the floor.

"_Emma_." Killian growled against her lips, his hand tightly gripping her hip as he backed her against the wall. He kissed his way along her jaw, letting his teeth gently scrape against her pale skin, satisfied by the red marks left in their wake.

A gasp escaped her lips as his tongue flicked over a particularly pleasurable point on her neck, making her pulse pound in her head. She shoved his shirt down his shoulders, her arms resting over his shoulders as she pulled him closer. She tilted her head back, letting the crown of her head rest against the wall as she bared for him as much of her neck as he desired to lavish.

Her hands smoothed over his shoulders, before nails bit into his skin leaving crescent shaped marks that wouldn't fade away quickly. "_Killian_." Her lips parted with his name as he kissed the valley between her breasts through the thin material of her tank top. She shimmied her shoulders, working her leather jacket down her arms. She wanted to feel their skin pressed together. She wanted to feel _him_.

"Gods." Killian breathed as he kissed a trail back up her throat, before he brought his face to hers. He leaned in, catching her in a heated kiss as his fingers slid beneath her tank top, ghosting over the smooth skin of her stomach, over the curve of her waist.

He leaned back, bringing his hook up and sliding the point gently over her shoulders before he reached the straps of her tank. She could get a new one. With a thrilling _snap_ the elastic tore and he quickly repeated the action with the second strap.

"I liked that tank." Emma pouted, her bottom lip puckering out.

"Tough," Killian growled, catching her bottom lip between his teeth and biting down, hard enough to draw blood if he applied anymore pressure.

Emma's nails dug into his shoulders and she fought for the release of her lip, rocking her hips forward to distract him.

This was a dance they hadn't practiced yet, but one that was _clearly_ needed. Perhaps Neal could be thanked for this.

The pirate released her lip with a smug grin, "You'll have to come up with an _excellent_ story as to why your lip's swollen tomorrow." He'd marked her. She was _his_.

"Maybe I'll tell them the truth." She cocked a brow daringly, sliding her hands down his chest, before working his belt open. "Maybe I'll just proudly tell them that you _fucked_ me." There was a glint in her eyes that was positively sinful. Driven by irritation and now flooded by passion.

"Get my pants off and then get _yours_ off." He ordered, his eyes taking on a dark glint.

"I take orders from _no one_ Captain." She retorted, gasping as he pressed against her, his hand angling her hips to feel exactly what he intended her to feel.

"My pants_ off_ and then yours." Killian gritted, his jaw set hard as he stared at her like an animal on the prowl, ready to ensnare its prey.

"Aye, aye _Captain_." She cursed how breathless she sounded as she quickly worked his pants open, smirking at the fact that the damn man was still adamant against undergarments.

Killian brushed his thumb over her nipple as she tried to work her own pants down, more than amused by the pause she took as she fumbled with the zipper. "Having trouble?"

"Yes." She looked up at him through her eyelashes, "You're making it impossible to concentrate." Emma finally tugged her zipper down, her jeans pooling at her feet as she kicked them off.

"Those need to come off too unless you want me to rip them as well." Killian's accent was thicker than he normally allowed it to be, his lust and desire bleeding into it and giving it a rich, gravelly tone that went straight to her core.

"You're incorrigible." She retorted snarkily, " Honestly you can't go around ripping my clothes."

"You ripped my shirt."

"Buttons can be repaired."

"Nevertheless, I'm sure you could buy a new pair."

"Maybe I like these."

"Well I'd like them much more if they were on the floor out of my way."

His breath danced across her neck as he lowered his lips to the apex of her neck, sucking at the pulse point, feeling it jump beneath his tongue.

She hooked her thumbs in her underwear, letting them drop to her ankles. "As you w-.." Her words were cut off as she moaned. She hadn't even noticed him moving his hand to between her thighs and yet there they were no sooner than she'd got her underwear off. "_Killian_."

"_My_ Emma." He nipped at her neck, not quite hard enough to leave a long term mark, but certainly a mark that would be there in a few hours.

"If you don't get on with this-" Again her words were cut short as he closed his mouth over hers in the same instant that he pressed a finger into her. They both groaned, tongues sliding against the other's. He pulled his hand away, gripping her ass as he tugged her upwards, pinning her against the wall.

Emma wrapped her legs around his hips, her arms going around his shoulder to support herself against the wall. The last thing she wanted was to fall and ruin the moment.

She cried out as he thrust into her, his hips moving with a sharp driving force. She scraped her nails down his back, leaving a crimson line where blood rose to the broken skin. It wasn't even aggression, this wasn't anger or hatred or malice – t his was _desire_ in its fullest and unbridled condition. This was need.

* * *

"What the hell _happened_ today?" Killian asked, finally pulling himself away from her blond hair, where his face had been buried for well over thirty minutes as they basked in the weary afterglow of sex. She looked like a goddess, the sheen on her skin, swollen lips parted as she breathed in and out steadily, her hair, pillowed out beneath her.

"Neal tried to kiss me." Emma replied bluntly, rolling her eyes. "Can you imagine what would have happened if he had?"

"Well, I'd probably be in jail for murder." Killian narrowed his eyes, "So you came home and decided to have sex with me?"

"I hadn't exactly planned for that." She admitted, tilting her head to look him in the eyes. "I think it's pretty clear _who_ I want."

Killian brought his fingers up to trace her well-kissed lips. "I think I've made it abundantly clear that you're _mine_." He drawled out, laughing with a cheeky grin.

Emma hummed, "That you have. Here," She trailed her finger over her collarbone where a hickey had started to form, "Here." She pointed to the dusty colored bruise at her hip, "But, I think I've done a bit worse on you."

"M'back's a bit achy," Killian arched his back and shook his head, "Well worth it I say. That was… well, let's be honest _incredible_."

"You were pretty good." Emma replied, trying to hide her grin, covering her face with her arm.

Killian smoothed his hand over her stomach as he rolled over onto his side, coming close to her. "Emma.."

She arched a brow, uncovering her face. "Yes?"

"This is probably an awful time to actually say this… but."

The look on his face and the tenderness of his voice told her _exactly_ what this was about. Her world seemed to fade away, the humming sound in her ears that made her feel like she was either going to cry or pass out was almost overwhelming.

"You don't have to say this…" Emma shook her head, not wanting him to suddenly feel pressured into saying it because he felt threatened by what Neal had tried.

"But I _want_ to." Killian smiled, that warm genuine smile that was only ever seen by her anymore. "Because I love you." He'd warred with himself over when those words should be said. They'd been cohabitating together for nearly a month and there was no way he could shake what he felt for her. Their kiss had broken a _curse_ it wasn't like they could pretend that they didn't love one another.

"I love you too." Emma spoke quietly, almost afraid to admit the words out loud. "The last person I said that too… left me and now thinks its okay to come back into my life when I don't want him."

"You see, subtle difference, love." Killian wrapped his arm around her, bringing her close. "You tell me to leave, I leave and you _never _see me again. I'm not going to torment you because you don't want me. I'm a gentleman and a gentleman knows what _no_ and _go_ means." He kissed her shoulder and breathed out heavily.

"Well, trust me when I say I won't _ever_ tell you to go." She promised, brushing her fingers through his dark hair with a stupid grin. "I'm not done with you."

"Well, that's good to know because _neither_ am I." Killian laughed, unable to keep at bay the lightness that seemed to flood his heart. He was _happy_, he was with her. He'd known there was something between them the day that he first saw her, but he'd never imagined after what happened up at the beanstalk, that _this_ would be how they ended up.

"How _not_ done with me are you right now?" Emma questioned with a sly smile, tugging on his hair so he met her eyes. "Because… I'm not _done_ with you right now."

"Oh, I see where you're going with this and I'm quite keen on this idea." Killian leaned in and kissed her, shifting her in his arms and pulling her atop his chest as he rolled onto his back. He prayed to the gods that she understood what _ever_ meant to him – he couldn't bear to lose her. Especially not to the Crocodile's son.


	7. Chapter 7

Emma nudge his foot with her toes, wrapping her arm around his waist as she leaned into press her lips to his ear, "Someone's at the door."

Killian groaned, "Don't answer it. I had plans to keep you in bed all day." He covered his face with his arm, burrowing deeper into the blankets.

"I _have_ to answer the door. I'm the sheriff." She retorted with a sigh, "So much for your plans." Emma reluctantly unwound herself from the pirate, slipping on a pair of sleep pants and tee-shirt before padding, barefoot, out into the family room.

"Who is it?" She called as she collected up the discarded clothing trail as she walked – no one needed see the shredded clothes they'd left behind last night.

"It's me!"

_Shit_.

"Coming Mary Margaret." Emma stepped into high gear, shoving the torn fragments of her tank top into the coat closet before she pulled the front door open. "Good morning!"

"Aren't you a sight for sore eye?" The dark haired woman stepped inside, eyeing her daughter curiously as she did. "I hope I didn't wake you."

"I-" Emma started, opening and closing her mouth before she finally composed a sensible thought, "You did, but it's fine I needed to get up." Her eyes flickered to the bedroom door – thankfully partially closed. "Do you want coffee?"

"Sure." Her mother, glanced towards the bedroom door where her daughter's gaze had been and her brows rose curiously. She watched, in silence, as Emma busied herself with making them both coffees, hesitating when she started to reach for a third mug. Once they both had a warm cup of coffee in in their hands, she couldn't resist the temptation of asking. "So are you going to tell me what happened?"

Emma tilted her head, confused for a moment before she realized what her mother meant. "Oh." She pressed her swollen lip to the rim of her mug and sighed. "What do you _think_ happened?"

_Oh_. "You and…?" Mary Margaret's eyes flickered towards Emma's bedroom again. She'd been out Neal and his family last night – had they?

"Oh my God! N_o_. I know who you're thinking right now and just… No." Emma almost dropped her mug, "Killian. That's what happened last night. Killian and I."

Her mother breathed out a sigh of relief, "Well that is much better than who I was picturing in there." She laughed, shaking her head. "I was going to say if that had_ that_ happened you seriously needed to get your head looked at."

"No, _no_." Emma took a sip of her coffee, "Actually, Neal did_ try_ to kiss me, but clearly that's not happening. But I came home irritated about that whole thing and all of this happened."

Sometimes, it was hard for Emma to see Mary Margaret as her mother, she had been her friend first – a confidant. They both knew things about each other that no one else in town knew. Things that mothers and daughters didn't tell each other.

"Seems like it was pretty rou…" She stopped herself, "That's not something I should be asking about. _Sorry_." She gave Emma one of her signature sympathetic smiles, "Forget that I even started to mention that."

"It's fine." Emma shrugged her shoulders, laughing a little. She fell silent for a few minutes, drinking her coffee and studying the wood grains of the table. Everything about the last few weeks had been insane and unbelievable. She'd gone to another world, met Captain Hook, found out that she'd had a son with the son of Rumplestiltskin, and then she found herself in love with Captain Hook – _Killian Jones_.

"Emma, is everything alright?"

Emma drummed her fingers against the table, "Well, he told me he loves me."

"_What_? Who?"

Emma nodded, "Killian… last night." She couldn't conceal the grin that crept onto her lips.

Her brows shot up, "And what did you_ say_ to him?"

"I said thank you." Emma retorted with a deadpan tone.

Mary Margaret started laughing, "So he's Ross and you're actually Emily – I totally had you pegged for Rachel."

"You've sat around and actually compared me to a character on a t.v. show?" Emma's brows quirked upwards and she stared at her mother in disbelief. "You're kidding me right?"

"Nope. I'm completely serious. I have to do something exciting with my life." She chirped back, moving over to the coffee pot to refill her mug, "So what did you _really_ say to him?"

"That I love him too."

"And you're sure about him? That he's safe? Because by telling him that… by starting this, you're letting him into your life and into Henry's life."

"I know that _mom_." Emma pressed her lips together; she hadn't expected her to completely understand all of this. It was a bumpy road, there were bound to be hiccups along the way – he _had_, after all, worked with Cora and Regina for a while. She could understand why her mother was hesitant to trust him. "I mean, I'm not ready to trust him completely yet, either."

"I just want you to be safe and happy."

Emma looked up from her coffee mug, smiling broadly at her mother, "You have no idea just how happy I am." She'd never been this happy – not in years, not in ever.

* * *

"Wake up Killian, it's almost twelve o'clock." Emma ordered gently as she pushed the bedroom door open. She headed straight towards her closet, more than ready to stay in her pajamas all day, but she had things to do. "I finally got rid of my mother; I figured that's why you were still in here." She glanced over her shoulder wondering why he still hadn't said anything.

The bed was empty.

"Killian?" Her eyes flickered to the floor. Her pulse was hammering in her ears, the overwhelming rush of dread sweeping over her.

His clothes were gone. He was gone. Without a single word.

"_You tell me to leave, I leave and you never see me again. I'm not going to torment you because you don't want me." _He had said all of those words to her last night. Right there. On the bed, with his arms wrapped around her and his nose buried in her hair. And he'd meant them.

She thought.

If he had meant it why was he gone? Without a word or a note or _anything_ that would tell her where he was. She couldn't even give him the benefit of the doubt because she knew – she just_ knew_ that he had left her. Everyone did.

Emma squeezed her eyes shut, willing herself not to shed a single tear of over this. Even alone – she couldn't cry. She couldn't let herself. That was defeat - that was admittance that once again she'd fucked up. Because if everyone left her, she was clearly the problem.

Why was it that she always chose the wrong guy? Even when she thought… She'd been an idiot. She'd thought that_ he_ was better than that. With the kiss and the magic… and the _love_.

_Oh God._ She'd told him that she loved him. Maybe she had played the part of the pawn in some scheme he had with Cora.

* * *

"So, _your highness_," Killian drawled out coldly, "Is there something I might assist you in?"

"_Ah_, look who finally slithered back." Cora gave a brisk chuckle, looking the pirate up and down. He'd changed; his whole demeanor had lost something of its menace. "Did_ good_ not suit you as well as you thought it would?"

Killian looked away, not willing to divulge his sudden change of allegiance, "I have unfinished business and the clock's ticking."

"So you _chose_ her, but she didn't choose you?" Cora smirked, lacing her gloved hands together, with a cruel smirk spreading across her lips. "Did you _honestly_ believe that someone like you had a chance with her? Did she come to her senses and realize that you're a villain?"

The pirate set his jaw hard, "I have unfinished business, being with her wasn't going to enable me to finish it." Killian stared at the Queen, his blue eyes betraying him, the hurt all too evident in them.

"Would this help ease your troubles?" Cora snapped her fingers, a dark purple cloud engulfing her. It dissipated slowly revealing the blond sheriff in place of the dark haired woman. "Is this better _Killian_?"

"Change back." Killian snapped, his eyes narrowing at the woman. "Get out of her body."

"I'm not in _her_ body." Cora laughed, "I simply look like her, there's a difference."

"Well _stop_ looking like her," Killian's voice strained and he stared away, not wanting to look at the visage of the woman he'd left not even an hour ago. "What do you want me to do for you?"

"Kill Baelfire."

"_What_?" Killian's eyes snapped towards the figure again, unnerved that such cruel malice was slipping from familiar lips, but it _wasn't_ Emma. No one could be her. "Kill Baelfire?"

"Yes," Her head cocked to the side in the very Cora-esq way. "He poses a threat to Regina and I in our plans."

"And what are your plans before I dig my heels in too deep?"

"Oh don't you worry, handsome," Cora smirked wickedly, the contours all wrong for Emma's appearance. "You'll still get to kill your crocodile."

Killian's fist tightened, "Fine." He agreed, but there was no way that he could bring himself to murder Milah's child. He might agree for the sake of saving face with the Queen, but he had no intentions of doing more than was necessary for his own goals.

"You don't seem to like this appearance. She must have done something pretty _awful_ to make you so repulsed." Cora stepped closer to Killian, amused by the way he countered backwards.

"Get away from me."

"What did Swan girl do Hook?"

"She doesn't trust me." Killian blurted out, feeling his heart in his throat. After everything he'd _expected_ that Emma could trust him, but no – he'd heard it with his own ears.

_"I mean, I'm not ready to trust him completely yet, either."_

* * *

If she could, she would gladly drown in a cup of hot chocolate. It was cold outside and the warmth from the drink was comforting as she wrapped her hands around the mug, staring down at the dark liquid. The whip cream had melted and was now making the surface of the cocoa have a pale coloring, flecks of cinnamon floating around meaninglessly as he breath pushed made little ripples in the drink.

"Everything alright Emma?"

She looked up, dreading the owner of the voice. "I'm fine Neal."

"You know, about last night, I don't know what came over me." Neal had his hands stuffed into his hoodie pockets and he gave a classic, disinterested shrug. "I guess I was thinking about the past."

"Yeah." Emma said quietly, sliding her thumb around the rim of her mug. "Let's just not repeat it. I'm… interested in going there again." Her voice trembled. She'd gone there again, she'd loved and trusted someone and they'd left her. Again. And after everything she'd told Killian about what Neal had done to her emotionally with that betrayal, she couldn't understand why he'd upped and repeated it.

Maybe she was cursed, maybe the product of True Love wasn't meant to have True Love.

"Emma, babe, what's wrong?" Neal sank into the booth opposite of her, his eyes studying her expression.

She shook her head, pressing her lips together tightly, "It's nothing I want to talk about with you." With trembling fingers she lifted her hot chocolate to her lips and took a sip, unable to even find enjoyment in her favorite drink.

"If this is about last night-"

"It's not." Emma retorted, sitting the mug back down before she dropped. "It has nothing to do with you, not directly at least."

Neal furrowed his brows, "Is this about that damn pirate? As he done something?"

"No." Emma's face betrayed her; she tucked her bottom lip between her teeth and chewed on the bruised skin there.

"He's the reason I grew up without a mother Emma." Neal's voice wavered, "If he's up to something that could make Henry grow up without-"

"Henry already spent ten years without his real mother Neal, but that's on _you_." She snapped, grabbing her cellphone off of the table and starting to get up. "I need to go down to the station."

"David's wor-"

"I don't fucking care who's supposed to be working today Neal." She also, apparently, didn't care if she was making a huge scene in the middle of the diner. "I need to do something – anything today." She gave him a cold, unfeeling, smile before she turned on her heels and headed for the door.

"I still love you Emma."

She froze, trying to quickly process what she'd just heard come out of Neal's lips. "You _what_?"

Everyone was staring.

"I still love you Emma." Neal made a motion to step towards and she countered backwards.

"Get away from me."

"What did Hook do to you Emma?"

Emma's brows scrunched together in a vain attempt to ignore the sting of tears in her eyes, "I _trusted_ him."

That was all that needed to be said, the words were there – out in the open, clinging to the air for fleeting seconds before they were gone, mere echoes in their ears.


	8. Chapter 8

Emma really _shouldn't_ have been surprised to get a call that Gold's Pawn Shop had been broken into. No more surprised by that than the fact that the break in had been conducted by someone with a hook for a hand. The glass display case had been smashed in – though nothing was unaccounted for in it, the elegant grandfather clock that sat in one corner of the shop had a deep gash down the side, which resembled the slash of a hook.

"Do you know what's missing?" Emma gave Gold a wary look, recalling the day that they'd arranged the trade-off of her necklace for Hook's life.

Gold drummed his fingers against the curve of his cane, "A hand." He paused, chuckling darkly at the look of horror on Emma's face, before continuing, "And _your_ necklace."

"_My_ necklace?" Emma's brows shot up, shaking her head to clear away the confusion, "Wait, let's go back to the hand. _Who's_ hand?"

"Who do you think Miss Swan?" The miser retorted coldly, the façade of patience slipping away. "I want him caught."

"You had _Hook's_ hand?" She stressed, her hands going to her hips. "You're telling me he broke in here and stole my necklace and his hand? What the hell?"

"Indeed. And I'd rather like them both returned to me _dearie_. I'm well aware of your little tryst with the pirate, I'm sure this won't be a problem for you to do."

Emma swallowed thickly, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Rumplestiltskin grinned, "You don't think I planted that little seed in your head without cause do you? _True Love_ breaks any curse." He thumped his cane against the ground, swiveling his weight on it. "Without the two of you breaking the curse that kept the town within the limits, I wouldn't have my son back."

The sheriff chewed on her bottom lip, praying for her face no to betray her thoughts, "Well, I'm not in charge of what Hook does and does not do. True Love or whatever aside, I don't know where he is and I don't know where your stolen things are."

"You're good at finding things, _find_ them." His voice had an edge of malice to it.

"I'll do my best," She retorted with a tightlipped smile. When she found Hook she was going to verbally murder him on two accounts: one, having the audacity to leave her without a word and two, for being thick enough to go and screw Rumple over after she'd saved him from him once. "If you'll excuse me." Emma turned, heading towards the front door.

"Miss Swan."

"Yeah?" She cocked a brow and looked back towards Gold.

"You'll take care to be more _considerate_ towards my son, if you wish for things to go smoothly for you and the pirate." It was a slap to his face that both the mother of his _son_ and now the mother of his _grandchild_ had fallen for the pirate.

* * *

Killian's brows furrowed together as he watched the blond approach him. It wasn't _her_. The gait was wrong, the way she moved her arms as she walked was wrong, she canted her head in a haughty superior way that couldn't be _one_ person.

"What do you want Cora?" Killian growled out, his fist balling at his side. His eyes narrowed at the witch, feeling the flare of anger swell up.

"I've brought you a gift Killian." She smirked, her voice a poor trade-off for the real Emma. Cora held out cloth wrapped parcel, willing him to take it.

"What is it?" Killian sneered at the gift, but took it curiously. His eyes widened as he opened the package. "_My_ hand." How had the witch found his hand?

"It is my gift to you, since you've been a dear and chosen to kill the boy for me." She chuckled coldly, twirling her finger in a curl of blond hair, "I can reattach it for you."

"I'm sure you can," The pirate pressed his lips together, his eyes flickering to her neck. "That's Emma's necklace… Where did you get that?"

Cora's fingers went to the swan emblem, "I thought it would make me more _realistic _for you. A bit of motivation to get the job done."

"Well," Killian rocked on his heels, "I may seem to be a man of many interests, but my apologies I must refuse your _offer_." The thought actually made bile rise up in his throat in disgust.

"Shame," Cora retorted, chuckling as the purple cloud engulfed her and the visage of Emma faded away, "And I was willing to correct a recent hurdle you're going to face." She turned on her heels, slipping into the shadows between the buildings.

Killian's brows furrowed together and his gaze fell to the ground, spotting the shine of metal on the pavement. Emma's necklace. His fingers sought it out, holding it in his palm as if he were holding her hand. She'd traded the necklace for his life and now, for some reason, the fates had returned it to him.

His life was his again.

"_Hook_."

Killian turned on his heels, half expecting Cora in Emma's form again, but knowing as soon as he saw the blond before him that it was _the_ Emma. "Emma…"

Emma's eyes widened as they lit upon the stolen items in his hold, "I see you're back to your old tricks again." The bitterness in her tone was unintentional, but she couldn't fight back the anger that was there.

"_Well_," Killian drawled out with an indifferent chill to his voice. He could admit that it had been Cora who had given them to him, that he was the innocent party in the whole ordeal. "It's nothing too important."

"You have my necklace." Emma gritted, her eyes flickering to the metal chain that hung from his fist. "That was my trade off to Rumplestiltskin for your freedom."

"Oh, I _know_." Killian returned with a cold laugh, "The lure of owning my _own_ freedom was too strong. Forgive me."

"That's not going to happen." Emma bit out, hands on her hips. This was not the same man she'd been with just days ago, this wasn't the man she'd admitted that she loved. This was the cruel, careless man that she had met in the cell, after her betrayal. But why did she feel as if she'd betrayed him again? She'd done _nothing_ and yet that was how he saw fit to treat her.

"Well, then we're equal because I have no intentions of repeating my follies." The pirate huffed, casting his eyes away from her. "The days of trust are long gone."

Killian's words slapped her across the face and she felt her façade break, "Fuck you." She snapped, taking a instinctual step away from him. "Don't even talk to _me_ about _trust_."

"_I mean, I'm not ready to trust him completely yet, either."_ Killian growled out, "Don't talk to me about _trust_, lass."

Emma flinched at his words, "That's not… what I said." Her bottom lip trembled, "You left me over _that_?" She was at a loss for words, her heart hammering in her chest. "You _left_ me because of something I was saying to my mother to make her believe that I wasn't being an idiot about you?"

Killian canted his head to the side, confusion marring his expression, "You didn't mean it?"

"No, I didn't mean it _then_." Emma snapped, shaking his head. She was disappointed – not even in him, but in herself. "But congratulations _Hook_, you've made those words ring true _now_." She was going to be sick, she could feel the anger and the tears rising in her system.

"_Emma_-"

"Don't." She held up her hands in defense.

"You don't understand… I.. I made a mistake." Killian stepped forward again, but froze as it only proved to drive her backwards.

"No." Emma shook her head, "No Killian, it comes down to trust. That's what a relationship is… That's what _love_ is." Her voice wavered, "Clearly neither of us has the capacity for it." She pressed her lips together and looked straight into his eyes. "I'm done with you."

"_Emma_, wait-" Killian started forward, but she was already walking away. She had been walking away from him since the moment she found him. She didn't look back – she didn't turn back. Wait held no meaning for them now.

* * *

"Hey Emma," Ruby whispered as the Sheriff walked into the diner, she beckoned her to the counter. "There's something you need to know."

"What?" Emma arched a brow, in absolutely no mood for any more trouble in town. She had enough to deal with right now. "What's wrong?"

"I know, I should have been listening in last night-"

Emma frowned, "It was really hard for anyone_ not _to hear that conversation." Her cheeks flushed in embarrassment. She was a private person and last night had shot that all to hell.

"There's a woman here now." Ruby nodded her head towards the stranger sitting in the corner of the diner, playing with her phone. "She seems sweet enough," The waitress arched a skeptical brow, "But she's waiting for Neal."

"_What_?"

"Her fiancé, apparently."

"The bastard is _engaged_?" Emma hissed in a quiet voice, her eyes flickering to the woman in the orange coat. "After last night..?"

"That's why I'm telling you." Ruby shook her head, "After seeing everything Belle's gone through with Rumplestiltskin, I think it's safe to say that Neal takes after his father."

Emma felt kicked in the face. She didn't have feelings for Neal, but the smallest part of her _believed_ him last night. But it just proved to her that she could trust no one. She couldn't even trust herself. "Son of a bastard."

"Speak of the devil," Ruby warned her eyes flickering past Emma to the door. "He's just come in." She straightened back up, "Hot chocolate and fries?"

"I- Yes." Emma was thankful for Ruby's quick cover, giving her a chance to regain composer. She glanced over her shoulder, just barely able to see a grin cross Neal's face as he zeroed in on the woman.

"Tamara, hey babe." Neal crossed the diner, wrapping his arms around her and hugging her tight.

Emma felt sick, "I think… I'm going to pass up on those fries." She sank onto bar stool, keeping her back to the 'happy couple', but she could still hear them. Pet names and little romantic phrases. She'd been there before. With him and she knew where it ended. It ended with hurt.

But, so it would seem, everyone she fell for brought her pain. Notably, those that seemed pulled into her life as if she we were the center of a universe that she had no interest in being the center of. Neal, Graham, August, and Killian – were all pulled in but then pushed out by the centrifugal force that seemed to be her. They all ended up breaking her. In different ways.

"Can I just get the hot chocolate to go?" Emma asked weakly, her hands gripping the counter tightly.

Ruby tilted her head in concern, "Have you at least worked things out with Killian?" She asked gently, "You should go talk to him about all of this."

"I-…" Emma's brows knit together and a lump rose up in her throat, "That's over."

"_Emma_." Ruby reached for her hands, covering them with a reassuring squeeze, "If you need to talk, I'm here."

"I might need one of those girl's nights we did right after I moved here." Emma admitted, keeping her eyes down, picking at sticky spot on the counter where syrup had dropped sometime earlier in the day.

"You know, over doesn't mean _over_. Not always. There could still be a cha-"

Emma shook her head, pressing her lips together to keep them from trembling, "We're too different. The clash was unavoidable."

* * *

The forest was bleak, wind swaying the trees, the rustling leaves the ideal soundtrack for the tasks undertook beneath their shade.

"Have you found the dagger?" Cora's grin was devious as she glanced towards her daughter who stood at her right.

A large hole had been dug before them, within it was the red-capped Smee who was busily digging away, compelled to do the bidding of the woman who held his heart.

"I've found it your majesty," He muttered, crawling from the deep hole like the rat that he was. "I've found it!"


	9. Chapter 9

"So you're _engaged_." Emma gritted as she sank into the booth opposite of Neal, eyes narrowed as she met his brown eyes. She didn't see what she had _ever_ seen in him, now. Hindsight was twenty-twenty – she understood that, but she still didn't understand _why_. Had she really been that alone and desperate that she latched onto the first warm body willing to keep her from being alone?

"I-.." Neal hesitated before his shoulders sagged, "I was going to tell you."

Emma folded her arms on the table, glaring at him sternly, "Before or _after_ you tried to kiss me?"

He laughed awkwardly, "I told you, I got caught up in the moment-"

"Before or _after_ you practically shouted that you still loved me?"

Neal blinked, "Of course I still love you Emma… But, it's not the _same_ as it once was." He shrugged indifferently, "I don't know what you want me to say babe."

"Stop calling me babe!" She snarled, cringing at that faux term of endearment. "You know, when you jested that you might be a perv but I was a car thief, who knew you were actually revealing a character trait of yours."

"Emm-"

Emma rolled her eyes, cutting him off, "No. You have nothing to say to me. Be lucky that I'll tolerate you being here for Henry's sake. If I had my way, you sure as hell wouldn't be here anymore."

"We have a kid together, I have _rights_."

"You lost those rights when you chose running over staying. You picked yourself instead of me." Emma slammed her palms against the table, "Don't you _dare_ tell me you have rights to _my_ son."

"I did what I thought I had to Emma." He tilted his head, eyes widening, trying to work the innocent expression to draw sympathy out of her. "It was for your own good."

She gave him a tight-lipped smile, "Of course. I deserved those eleven months, two years of waiting, and a life time of trust issues." She gritted, shaking her head. "Thanks for that."

"I thought I was doing the right thing."

"_Right_. Killing my hopes and dreams is about as _right_ as your father killing your mother because she didn't love him."

Neal set his jaw hard, "Is that what the _pirate_ told you? Do you really believe him?"

"He spent _three hundred years_ running after the man that had killed someone he loved," Those were words that hurt to speak – knowing that it was Milah's memory that fueled Killian and it was possible that _that_ was why they couldn't work. "You spent that same amount of time running from that man and because of that you hurt me. Not just by putting me in prison, dashing my dreams. You've hurt me recently."

"How?"

"It's because of _you_ that I lost someone I love – _loved_. Because I can't trust. I can't _hope_." She could feel the irritation rising inside of her, her stomach churning angrily at the stressing situation.

"You fell in love with _him_?" He snapped, "You fell in love with the _same_ man who ruined my family? Are you going to let him ruin us?"

"There is no _us_." Emma laughed bitterly, feeling like a broken record. "You get your happy ending with Tamara and I get…" Her expression fell, "I get nothing… Thanks for that." She gave him a cold, unfeeling smile, before she slipped out of the booth and out of the diner. She was going to be sick.

Killian could still feel her skin against his skin, her warmth spreading through him – helping him to abandon the chill that had taken up residence in his chest over the past three hundred years. She'd helped him _feel_.

He adjusted his telescope, focusing in on her bedroom window – a room he'd become so intimately familiar with. He had almost come to refer to it as _their_ room. A thought that had crossed his mind _that_ day.

The day it all ended.

A man like he didn't _deserve_ love – not love from Emma, the savior, the hero. He wasn't worthy of her. Maybe ending this had saved her from being tarnished by his darkness and this was what was supposed to happen. Decided before either of them had a chance to ruin their lives with each other.

It was better this way.

He had to keep telling himself that until it _was_ okay. Because right now everything hurt. He would rather have Cora's hand in his chest than continue feeling this piercing ache that started the moment she walked away from him.

His heart kept telling him to _wait_ – that the worst would come and they would weather the storm together. But he knew that something was coming, something _bad_, and if he knew well enough, the worst of the storm would center around him. If Emma was kept away from him, then she was going to be safe. Death followed him like an old friend.

And he was ready to shake his hand.

"She's such a pretty thing," Cora sneered as she looked down at the unconscious brunette, petting her fingers over her hair, "Yet, so gravely foolish."

Regina rolled her eyes, tugging off her gloves, leaning down to tie up the librarian so she wouldn't be a hindrance, "She's a true idiot." She said callously, "And so determined in her belief that the Dark One has a _heart_."

"Oh, he does." Cora smirked, "Or rather, he used to have a heart. But that was a _very_ long time ago."

"I'd rather _not_ know about that." Regina gave her mother a look, before she slipped her hand into Belle's coat and pulled out the key to Gold's shop. "I think you'll be needing this."

"_Perfect_." Cora flashed her daughter a sinister grin as she took the key and was engulfed in purple smoke. As the color dissipated, in the place of Cora stood Belle, head canted and eyes made like an innocent doe.

"_I'll stand by him no matter what_." She mocked, giving a second glance to the unconscious woman, "Now let the games begin."

"I'll have her moved to the ward before the night is through."

"Excellent."


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: There has been a month and a half time jump.

"It's the calm before the storm," Mary Margaret's fingers laced in her lap as she looked up at her husband, watching as he repositioned the gun halter that was crossed over his chest. "Something's going to happen."

"I know," David shrugged, "It's this damned waiting game that's starting to get to me." He rested his hands against the edge of the desk, leaning back against it. "If they have the dagger, we're all at risk."

Mary Margaret looked away from David, eyes trained on her daughter as she came back from the bathroom. "Are you okay Emma?" She questioned, her brows knit together in concern.

"I'm fine," She replied without hesitation, "I was just mulling over what you two were just saying." She crossed her arms across her chest, "The waiting game."

Her mother eyed her a moment longer before she looked back to David, "No one's seen anyone. We have no idea what Hook and Regina and Cora are up to."

"Hook's not up to anything." Emma said quickly, her eyes cast to the ground. "He's not working with them. That much I know."

"Have you heard from him Emma?" David asked, his gaze hardening. "Because, if you've seen him-"

"I haven't," Emma confessed, shaking her head. "I haven't seen him in almost a month and a half." She frowned, but quickly washed the expression from her face as she leaned over the desk and grabbed a file, "We can't just sit around a wait for the witch bitches to attack, there's other things happening here in town. I mean, Leroy was talking about the mines seeming a bit unstable, maybe you could go take a look at them?"

"Emma." Mary Margaret tilted her head, giving her daughter a sympathetic smile. "David could you excuse us?"

"Of course." David rose to his feet, pressing a kiss to Mary Margaret's cheek before he pulled on his jacket and left the station.

"Emma we need to talk."

Emma bristled, "About what?"

"Hook."

"I _really_ don't want to talk about Killian, its sore subject and I just…" She shook her head, swallowing the lump in her throat. "I have enough shit to deal with right now."

"What happened?"

Emma rested her hip against the desk, "It's stupid." She accepted with a heavy sigh. "He misunderstood something I said, he thought I didn't trust him and I _did_. But… it's over, it doesn't matter now."

"Have you tried talking to him?" Mary Margaret rose to her feet, cupping her daughter's cheeks in her hands, "You've been in a haze for the last month, Emma."

"I don't _want_ to talk to him. I have other things to deal with right now. Maybe after this is all over with, I'll talk to him." Emma met her mother's eyes, brows creasing together. She was trying not to cry, to not let her emotions show. "I have things to do; I can't do this right now."

Mary Margaret let her slip past her, watching as Emma went to pull on her leather jacket. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going for a drive." Emma retorted, stopping at the door, "And maybe I'm going to drive down to the docks. I don't know _why_ considering his ship is gone and so is he." The bitterness in her tone was shocking to her mother.

"_Emma_." She frowned, her brows creased together. "You don't have to leave Emma, if you're upset about me asking I can go and you can stay."

Emma shook her head with a reluctant sigh, "It's not that… I just want some fresh air. I have a lot to think about. I've always done my best thinking down at the docks."

"You know what? I'll make your favorite dinner."

She smiled, "Thanks _mom_." Emma hesitated for a moment longer before she was out the door and heading towards her car. She _really_ had a lot to think about.

"How's your hot chocolate, kid?" Neal questioned, glancing down at his son as they walked side by side through town towards the pawn shop.

"I think it's better than Granny's." Henry gave him a look, before laughing. "But we _can't_ tell Ruby that, they might not serve us any more hot chocolate if they find out we're cheating on them with the coffee shop."

Neal rolled his eyes, laughing as he shook his head. "And we _can't_ have that happening." He took a sip of his own hot chocolate, before opening the pawn shop door, holding it open for Henry to go in first. "So, what do you want to tonight kid? Tamara's going to be back in town by six or so, depending on the traffic."

"You know," Henry started with one of his pensive expressions, "I really like her."

"Well, I'm glad you do – I really like her too." Neal sat his cup down on top of the display case before looking around the shop, "Papa are you here?"

Belle's footsteps cold be heard coming down the staircase and she rounded the corner into the shop, "He's gone out, but he'll be back soon." She grinned at Neal and then at Henry. "How are you boys today?"

"It was great! Neal took me to get breakfast and then he got me hot chocolate." He held up his cup with a big grin, taking a sip.

"As you've heard, it was a good day." Neal nodded affirmatively, nudging the back of Henry's leg with his toe, "You want to have a mock sword fight, kid?"

"Do I?!" Henry laughed, "Of course I do."

"The wooden swords are in the back room where we left them the other day." Neal nodded his head towards the door. "Lemme take that so you don't spill it." He grabbed the cup from Henry's hands sitting it up on the counter next to his own.

"I'll be right back!" Henry exclaimed, tucking his hands into his coat, heading to the back room.

"He's a _really_ good kid." Belle said warmly, drumming her fingers against the glass of the display case.

Neal clapped his hands together, bringing them to his lips, "I'm trying to be as good of a father as I can be. He deserves that much, at least."

"I think you're doing great." She assured, glancing towards the door, "Where did you put those swords?"

"Henry?" Neal called out, teasingly adding, "Have you gotten lost?"

There was no reply.

"Henry?" Belle asked concernedly, moving towards the door, followed by Neal.

"_Shit_."

The backdoor was wide open and Henry was nowhere to be seen.

"Emma! Hey Emma!" Neal was running down the boardwalk, out of breath, and clearly distraught. "Emma, something's happened."

"What?" Emma wiped at her cheek, masking the tears that had slipped down her cheeks before she could stop them. She had something else to think about now, "What's happened?"

"I don't know!" He stressed, his arms flailing at his sides a bit, "He was in my father's shop and then the next minute he was gone."

"Shit." Emma's eyes widened, "They've taken him."

"_Who_?"

"Cora and Regina," He heart was pounding in her chest, "Who _else_ was there? Who knew you were in the shop?"

"I-.. I don't know." Neal confessed, confused and unsure about what she was getting at. "Belle was in the shop?"

Emma tilted her head, "No, Belle's at the library."

"Fuck." Neal swore, turning around and pacing a few steps away from her, "How the hell are we getting him back?"

Just as Emma was about to reply the ground shook, the water rippling and lapping against the ships docked along the pier. The movement culminated into an explosion somewhere in the middle of town, that left car alarms screaming and smoke billowing upwards.

No more waiting. The time was here.


	11. Chapter 11

Neal and Emma got into town just in time to see _Rumplestiltskin_ hauling off with Henry, who was kicking and screaming as they vanished in a puff of purple smoke.

"I have the dagger!" Mary Margaret shouted, as Neal and Emma came into focus, the purple haze fading away.

"I'll take that." Neal said firmly, snatching his father's dagger from Mary Margaret's hand, giving Emma a wary glance. "I don't trust _anyone_ with this." And neither did his father.

"Your father _took_ Henry!" She shouted at him, "Why the hell are you worried about who has that dagger right now. We are _all_ on the same side."

He hesitated, brows furrowed, "Right, of course.." He nodded vaguely, feigning confusion as he looked around, "Where are Cora and Regina?"

"Gone." Mary Margaret answered, grabbing Emma's arm. "Hook-"

The world felt like it was crashing down on her, "N-no.." Had she been _that_ wrong about him?

"He gave me the dagger." Her voice wavered, "He was trying to keep Rumplestiltskin from getting Henry but… It was too late, but… He said that this was the _last_ thing he had left to live for. To save _your_ son."

Emma's expression shattered, her heart aching. "I have to find them."

"Go ahead, do your worst." Killian gritted, placing himself in between Henry and Rumplestiltskin, prepared to take whatever magic was thrown at him. "The boy has done _nothing_."

"He's the reason I'm going to lose!" The shrill tone was far from the voice of Mr. Gold, it was the same menacing voice that Killian had last met the day that Milah had been killed. "And you think that _you_ can stop me?" He giggled, gaze flickering to Henry. "Give me the boy."

"If you want to kill someone, kill _me_." Killian insisted, keeping himself in front of Henry, out of the line of attack. "I'm the reason you became the Dark One, aren't I? Because Milah chose me." He glowered, fingers itching to reach for his sword. "You lost your son because of _me_ didn't you? Because of becoming the Dark One."

"You lie."

"No, this is _my_ fault."

"Killian what are you doing?"

Killian glanced at Emma, not taking his eyes off of the Dark One, "I'm protecting your son, love." He reached for his sword, "_All_ of this is my fault."

Emma shook her head, "No! No.. None of this is _your_ fault Killian." Her heart was hammering in her chest. "Henry come here." Her words came out quick as she motioned for Henry to come away from the portal.

Killian side stepped, giving Henry a little more protection before he was safely in Emma's arms. "Eyes on me _Crocodile_." He growled, raising his sword to distract Rumplestiltskin from going after Henry.

"Papa!" Neal shouted, drawing his father's attention away from the pirate. The dagger in his hand.

"Oh _goodie_." The Dark One cackled, clapping his hands together. "Son, have you met the man who stole your mother."

Killian rolled his eyes, even if the face of danger he could contain that quick-witted sarcasm, "Of course, choosing me _certainly_ equates to stealing her. I didn't realize Milah was an object and not a woman."

"Henry, run." Emma said seriously, touching her son's cheek. "Go back to Mary Margaret and David's and do not leave. Don't go anywhere else." She whispered, embracing her son for a brief moment before she let him go. Watching as he rushed through the forest.

The pirate's shoulders sagged, "If you want to blame someone, fine, blame _me_. Apparently unwittingly I've ruined _everyone's_ life here." He laughed with an edge of bitterness in his tone as his eyes flickered towards Emma. "But by all means, don't threaten the lad again."

"You threatened _my son_?" Neal questioned, eyes widening as he stared at his father. "Your own flesh and blood?"

"It was the _only_ thing I could do." He gave a little jump, "It was his life or _mine_ and I've waited far too long to have my son back aga-"

Horror marred the man's expression as realization struck him, "You're _not_ my papa." Neal lunged forward, the dagger piercing the Dark One's side.

Purple light engulfed the forest, the air filled with the metallic tang of electricity.

"You caused all of this!" Neal growled, grabbing the sword his father had dropped. "We were _all_ happy before you came into our lives. You've ruined _everyone's_ life!"

"Hook!" Emma shouted out, eyes widening as she watched him stumble backwards – knocked off balance by the swing of Neal's sword. Everything was wrong. Everything had _gone_ wrong. Hook had taken the blame for _everything_ that had happened, in a selfless act of accepting the blame for things that had truly been nothing he could control.

"Neal! Please!"

"_Back off Emma_." He threatened, his voice strange and twisted by the powers of the Dark One that no inhabited him. Neal lunged towards Emma, swinging his sword. He wasn't himself. This was the Dark One, the evil, the dark magic.

Hook was out of breath, but he staggered forward, attempting to lure Neal away from Emma. "Run! Emma _run_!"

"Killian." His name fell from her lips as she watched in horror as the scene played out before her. He fisted his hand in the material of Neal's shirt, too close to the Dark One to stay safe. With a single thrust, the sword pierced through Killian's stomach, a howl of pain escaping his lips. But he didn't release his hold of the Dark One, he fell backwards, taking the man with him.

And then the portal closed.

"No! No. No." Emma's knees betrayed her and she collapsed to the ground where the portal had been, fists slamming against the dirt. "Killian… _Killian_." She had thought she knew what heartbreak felt like before – but this was a whole new world of pain.

She'd lost him. And he didn't know.

Again and again the scene played over in her mind. The look on Killian's face as the sword pierced him, his eyes meeting hers and holding her gaze. Before he was gone.

Emma sat up, eyes still trained to the spot of dirt where the green portal had been. He was probably dead. There was no way that _anyone_ could survive that injury. Not even Captain Hook – not even Killian Jones.

Not even the father of her child.

Her hand went to her stomach; fingers brushing over that _barely_ there curve. She, herself, hadn't even had a chance to process the positive test. She'd steeled away into the bathroom at the station, taken the test because _something_ felt off and there it was – the proof that even if they were _done_ what they had had wasn't _done_ with them.

She had had every intention to tell him, before this day had gone to hell. Before everything fell apart. Before she'd lost her _True Love_.

_Four years later_ and the wounds were still felt as fresh as ever. Trips to the graveyard always reminded her that this was _real_, that he was gone. _Really_ gone. He wasn't going to find her again.

Her legs felt numb as she sank to the ground beside the grave, "He was a good man… He really was." Emma whispered, leaning against the side of the tombstone, resting her temple against the curve of the stone, as if it were his shoulder.

There was no body beneath them, no spirit to speak to in this realm. He'd been lost through the portal and she assumed – if there were ghosts – they couldn't go through the realms.

"What's this say?" The little girl asked, running her fingers over the chiseled letters on the headstone.

"They say _I'm not done with you_." Emma swallowed back a sob, "It was… a little thing between your father and I."

"Daddy?" She clapped her hands together, grinning infectiously.

"Yes, between your daddy and I." Emma rested her head against the stone again, keeping her eyes on her daughter as she toddled around the rows of headstones. She was carefree; she didn't know the pain that her mother had gone through – the loss. She was oblivious to it all.

"Daddy!"

Emma turned around to see what she was doing and she swore her heart stopped.

"_I told you I wasn't done with you_." Those too-blue eyes, wide grin, swaggered gait.

"Killian." She breathed, standing up slowly, her heart hammering in her chest as she stepped forward. "_Killian_!"

"Hello, my love." His arms went around her, holding her close. Four years he'd fought to get back to her. "I've missed you." Killian buried his nose in her hair, breathing in deeply.

"Missed is an understatement." Emma laughed through her tears, squeezing him tightly. "How are you alive? You were stabbed…"

"Magic, love." Killian chuckled, biting back his own tears. He drew up his shirt for her to see the jagged scar on his skin and his eyes flickered towards the little girl, "…Emma?"

Emma wiped at her eyes, fighting through the tears. "Killian, I want you to meet _our_ daughter." Her heart felt like it was in her throat, tears slipping down her cheeks despite her attempts to stave them off.

Killian didn't hesitate, sweeping the little girl up into his arms, smiling at her blond curls and blue eyes, "She's beautiful Emma." He chuckled as the little girl poked at his cheek, "What's your name, lass?"

"Hope." She grinned, scrunching up her nose. "Because mommy never gave up hope."


End file.
